CAL Bank Tripples Stated Capital

CAL Bank Limited has more that trippled its stated capital from the initial GHC 27.7million to GhC100 million.

That was made possible through the successful injection of GHC 75million into the bank through a private placement initiated by the bank in September last year.

By this, the bank has met the Bank of Ghana’s (BoG’s) minimum capital requirement of GHC 60million for local banks.

The transaction saw the African Development Partners I (ADP I), Proparco acquiring 28.97 and 6.86 per cent respectively of the banks with the country’s pensions’ fund managers, the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), retaining its 33.18 per cent stake in CAL.

It is, however, unclear how much was contributed by each of these institutional investors.

With its current GHC 100million stated capital, CAL Bank is now GHC 40million above the regulator’s minimum requirement of GHC 60million for local banks by December 2012.

The Chief executive Officer of the bank, Mr Frank Adu Jnr, said the conclusion of the private placement “spells the beginning of an exciting new era for the bank.”

With the new capital coming on the heels of a 133.9 per cent increase in the bank’s operating profit in the first quarter of 2012, Mr Adu Jnr said “we are now fully geared to deliver on our defined growth strategy.”

The bank recorded profit before tax of GHC 10.87million compared to the GHC 3.15million it posted in the first quarter of 2010.

It has a growth target of becoming a major player in the financial market.

Looking ahead, the CEO said the bank would be strengthening its banking and corporate finance units to enable it tap into “the burgeoning growth in the oil and gas related sectors, including the telecommunication industry.”

He said the bank would also be working to increase its footprints in the local financial sector while widening its lending, mortgage and electronic delivery channels to meet the increasing demand for its services nation-wide.